This year one of the things that has made a huge difference in restrictor plate racing, although maybe overlooked, is the idea of keeping the plate size the same from a year ago but taking away the ride height rule.
At tracks like Daytona and Talladega, the focus is downforce and speed. How one gets the most speed is lowering the car as close to the track as possible.
NASCAR took away the ride height rule this year, which in essence said that when a car went through inspection, it had to meet a spec of how close a car was allowed to the ground at certain points, like the hood, roof, windows, etc. Teams that went through the post-race inspection process, sometimes they failed at certain points. That’s not due to manipulation by the teams, but could be a mechanical change such as a spring rubber being pulled out, making a spring softer and lowering the car.
Others could just be body flex, and the metal just buckles.
NASCAR felt with the new package they were using for aerodynamics this season would make it so teams were focused on making the car more sensitive to handling, so the rule was taken away. Great in theory, but when that rule is put into effect at a plate track, things certainly are different.
It was about 20 years ago when NASCAR, at least when it came to qualifying, saw the cars sit so low to the ground, the tires would fit in the wheel wells, but when at full speed, the tires almost looked tucked into the car, like it had air bags. In 2000, NASCAR changed the rules by actually handing the teams the shocks and springs required on the rear, putting the car up in the air more, and creating drag, slowing them down.
The ride height rule in a sense was the same idea, minus the teams actually being provided the shocks and springs to run on the rear. But, these cars are becoming so fast, so sensitive, and so unpredictable at these tracks, having this rule not in effect has made it a lot more challenging.
This weekend, when cars were in the draft just in practice, the teams were hitting 205 mph at points. We see speeds like this at Pocono and at Michigan. But, the thing here, is with the plates on the car, that is sustained speed.
Now, in a sense, Jamie McMurray’s tumble in practice brought this to the forefront, and NASCAR then make a slight change by taking off the plates with the four 7/8ths size holes, and going with a 55/64ths size. That small change reduces the cars down about 10 horsepower, which seems small, but it takes away a slight bit of speed. But, in reality, it’s hardly enough. Today’s cars are going so fast, and sitting so low, changing a plate is like putting a band-aid on a cut artery. It won’t do much.
Everyone knows plate racing frightens me, and this rule of allowing the cars to not have a minimum height requirement is a big deal. These cars need slowed down somehow, and maybe an entirely new rules package could be looked at to do so. Is it a solution that will be done this year, maybe or maybe not. After all, NASCAR made a rules change in 2000 between the summer race at Daytona and the fall race at Talladega, and it worked a lot better. Maybe it’s time to consider doing something like that in this era.
No matter what, plate racing certainly will be frightening to me. I don’t see that changing any time soon.
STAGE 1: Brad Keselowski
STAGE 2: Paul Menard
RESULTS: 1-Logano 2-Kurt Busch 3-Elliott 4-Harvick 5-Stenhouse Jr. 6-Ragan 7-Almirola 8-Bowman 9-Newman 10-Suarez
NOTABLE FINISHES: 12-Johnson 13-Kyle Busch 26-Truex Jr. 35-Dillon
CAUTIONS: 6 for 29 laps. 57-61 (Stage 1 Conclusion); 73-78 (#1, 6, 10, 20, 42, 78 Incident-BS); 112-116 (Stage 2 Conclusion); 130-133 (Debris-FS); 156-159 (Fluid on the track from #51); 167-171 (2, 3, 11, 12, 14, 18, 21, 24, 34, 43, 47, 48, 62 and 95 Incident-T3).
LEAD CHANGES: 25 among 16 drivers. K. Harvick 1-12; A. Bowman 13-38; D. Wallace Jr. 39-43; B. Keselowski 44-57; A. Allmendinger 58; B. Keselowski 59-61; W. Byron 62-63; B. Keselowski 64-66; W. Byron 67; C. Buescher 68; M. DiBenedetto 69-74; J. Logano 75-96; D. Hamlin 97-104; P. Menard 105-112; B. Gaughan 113; W. Byron 114-124; Kurt Busch 125-129; A. Allmendinger 130; R. Stenhouse Jr. 131-134; D. Hamlin 135-137; J. Logano 138-140; B. Keselowski 141; J. Logano 142-144; D. Suarez 145; K. Kahne 146; J. Logano 147-188.
TIME OF RACE: 3 Hrs, 16 Mins, 46 Secs.
AVERAGE SPEED: 152.489 MPH
MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.127 Seconds
POINT STANDINGS (Earned/Behind Leader [Playoff Points]): 1. Kyle Busch, 447 [17]; 2. Logano, -30 [7]; 3. Harvick, -81 [12]; 4. Bowyer, -112 [5]; 5. Kurt Busch, -127 [2]; 6. Keselowski, -130 [4]; 7. Hamlin, -133 [1]; 8. Blaney, -134 [2]; 9. Truex Jr, -144 [7]; 10. Larson, -167; 17. Dillon, -237 [5].